Amegilla cingulata, commonly known as the blue-banded bee, is an Australian native bee that occurs in many other regions. Currently, several scientific organizations are conducting research on how the blue-banded bee benefits agriculture through its distinctive "buzz pollination". These bees are very important for the production of food and contribute to at least 30% of crops in Australia.

__________________spruce: apart from the weird tuft of white hair she's still a beautiful person

"I jumped up and said, 'That's it!,'" Mulcahy remembers. He knew that Beebe really had collected the nightsnake on Clarion Island. Martinez-Gómez encouraged Mulcahy to travel to Mexico to see if they could find the snake once again. "It was a big risk," Mulcahy admits. "I'm a technician at a molecular lab. They don't pay me to go out and chase things. I had to get funding elsewhere." The journey—which required approval from the Mexican Navy—would also take more than a month, because Mulcahy would be joining a team that would spend 15 days on nearby Socorro Island before making the 16-hour ocean journey to Clarion for another 15-day stay.

__________________spruce: apart from the weird tuft of white hair she's still a beautiful person

Actually they are quite a pest these days, although they're a native bird. Noisy Miners specialise in living on the edge of eucalypt forests and chasing all the other birds out of their territory, but because so much forest cover has been removed by human action, especially west of the Great Dividing Range, there are a lot more "edges" - like trees lining roads and fence-lines, or in cleared paddocks or urban parks and gardens. So the same human-influenced conditions that have brought species like Regent Honey-eaters and Swift parrots to their knees have profited Noisy miners greatly.

On the road and can't access the talk vid but interesting and seems then it's an area/perimeter problem and if there were more unbroken forest areas the problem would decrease. Not easy to see how that might be achieved but will watch the talk when can. We see similar issues with changing land use in the uk and benefitting species are gulls, corvids and wood pigeons.

Actually they are quite a pest these days, although they're a native bird. Noisy Miners specialise in living on the edge of eucalypt forests and chasing all the other birds out of their territory, but because so much forest cover has been removed by human action, especially west of the Great Dividing Range, there are a lot more "edges" - like trees lining roads and fence-lines, or in cleared paddocks or urban parks and gardens. So the same human-influenced conditions that have brought species like Regent Honey-eaters and Swift parrots to their knees have profited Noisy miners greatly.

I've seen very few birds happy to tangle with noisy miners.
Bell miners are funny. They play the same game and I've seen them drive the noisy miners out of an area.
I've got a couple of little wattlebirds in our garden that refuse to back down. They'll occasionally take on a dozen or so noisy miners, which is impressive as hell. However, a lot of birds can't handle noisy miners at all.